Information Presentation in Virtual 3D

ABSTRACT

A method, system and program product for assisting a presentation owner in creating and presenting information to audience users in a virtual 3D cyclorama-like environment. A presentation object tool provides behavior in the cyclorama object to assist the presentation owner in resolving graphic objects into the cyclorama and in placing information onto the graphic objects. The presenter object tool also provides behavior in the graphic objects to allow the presentation owner to expand a graphic object into a larger viewing size, to increment and decrement the placement of graphic objects within the cyclorama&#39;s presentation space, and to place an expanded graphic object into a home viewing position for presentation to audience users.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of application Ser. No.12/560,259

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The instant invention relates to computer-implemented virtualenvironments where human participants are represented by avatars and,more specifically, to implementation of a programmed system forpresenting information subject matter to an audience of computer userswho may be physically dispersed around the real world.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The instant invention provides a method, system, and program productuniquely adapted for ease of creating and controlling the presentationof information images by means of a computer network implemented virtual3D environment to a widely-dispersed user audience using computers andnetwork communication.

The invention simplifies resolving and managing images, such as lectureslides and product description data, within a virtual 3D environmentthat supports audience participation in a natural manner in thatenvironment.

In a real-world museum-like space, an audience usually follows thepresenter as a group around the room to view and examine 2D and 3Dobjects in that space. In the virtual 3D environment of the invention,the audience members have no cause for movement of their avatars nor forusing camera control as the presentation owner moves from one image toanother. In the instant invention, the virtual 3D presentationenvironment rotates around the audience under the control of thepresentation owner to present the image serving as the current topic inthe presentation at a home position. The presentation owner retains asubstantial measure of control of the attention of the audience, whilethe audience members retain independence of movement and camera controlto view information most of interest to them at any particular point inthe duration of time the presentation images are available. Presentationduration time is also under the control of the presentation owner.

In one embodiment of the invention, information images are presented oncomputer display screens as textures accompanying a cyclorama-likeseries of TV screen-like graphic objects distributed evenly around theinner perimeter of a cylindrical-walled space in a 3D virtual world. Thepresentation owner has access to an additional copy of the currentinformation being presented. Therefore the avatar of the presentationowner can face the audience yet still see the subject matter beingpresented.

By defining one or more ready-programmed virtual 3D presentationenvironments, the users of the system need not perform any of the usualtime-consuming and often difficult graphic objects building usingprimitives such as cubes, pyramids and spheres, nor any of the attendantprogramming tasks usually required to achieve object movement andresponse to interactions in 3D virtual settings. Instead, only simpleactions and commands to resolve the presentation environment and to addinformation from text processing or portable document format files tothe system are needed.

In another embodiment, the virtual 3D space created on computer displayscreens, in which the presentation owner and the user audience areportrayed as avatars, is a semi-cylinder, and the TV screen-like graphicobjects containing the presentation content are arranged in partialcircle to the front of audience users, so that all or a substantialportion of the images being presented can be visually available by meansof camera vision directed at substantially normal angles to thesemi-cylindrical containing space, or to other images, not atsubstantially normal angles to the semi-cylindrical containing space, bythe means of independent avatar movement and/or camera control on theparts of the individual audience users. In this embodiment, as thepresentation images are incremented by the presentation owner, an endimage at the left-hand end of the audience of users jumps to the endposition of the images at the right-hand end of the audience of users.

Each member of the participating user audience has a large part of theinformation always available for reference by using avatar movementand/or the camera control features of the viewer application thatprovides the user with visibility into the 3D virtual world; hence, theuser is not limited to the material being currently presented by theowner of the presentation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a wide area network in which theinstant invention finds utility.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a computer which is used to implement thecomputers shown in the diagram of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view on a computer display screen seen by apresenter when using the invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view on a computer display screen being seen byan audience member in using the invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view on a computer display screen being seen byan audience member who is not watching the expanded image beingcurrently presented at a home position, but who has used avatar movementand/or camera control to view another image of the presentation.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing interaction of the presentation ownerwith the participating computers according to the method of theinvention.

FIG. 7 is an interaction diagram showing message flow and responseaccording to the method of the invention.

FIG. 8 shows how FIGS. 8A and 8B are connected.

FIGS. 8A and 8B show a more detailed block diagram of the first threeblocks of FIG. 6, showing the interaction of the presentation owner withthe cyclorama presenter object tool of FIG. 6 according to the method ofthe invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One embodiment of the invention provides a simplified system and methodfor presenting information as textures on a cyclorama-like series ofvirtual TV screen graphic objects surrounding a virtual 3D space, alldisplayed on a computer display screen's view of a particular localityin a 3D virtual world wherein the defined virtual 3D cycloramaenvironment of the instant invention has been placed for operation.

As used in this detailed description, “3D” does not mean binocularvision. “3D” in this description means the effective use of the 3Denvironment of a virtual world, where things can be done that are notpossible or would be prohibitively expensive in the real world. When anindividual is using or experiencing a virtual world, that person is ineffect carrying around a virtual camera in that virtual world. Thecamera is, by default, attached to a visual representation of thatperson; such visual representation is called an avatar. The camera givesa moving, changing image of the current moment's perspective in thevirtual space in which that individual's avatar is currently situated.The human mind easily translates this acceptably real-looking virtual 3Dspace into an actual and legitimate experience, almost as real aswalking about and having a similar experience in the real world.However, the virtual world experience still appears different enoughfrom the real-world experience for the human users using it to readilyaccept that the virtual experience will not necessarily be encumbered byall the normal constraints of the real world. Additionally, virtualworld experiences usually provide some means of communication foravatars, and hence for their real-life users, that are inhabiting thevirtual world. Local chat and direct inter-avatar communicationscapabilities, allowing communication both in typewritten and audibleforms, are typical on current 3D virtual world platforms.

In some virtual 3D environments, primitive graphic objects may becombined into larger and usually more complex graphic objects andthereafter manipulated, both through human control or through theoperation of scripts that are part of the virtual world'simplementation. Scripts are independent blocks containing programmingcode and local data and global data. Scripts are attached to and/orembedded within graphic objects and impart behaviors to them, includingthe ability to communicate with each other and with avatars or otherfree agents in the 3D virtual world. Scripts have states; and aninstance of a script normally exists in a single state at any point intime. States are composed of events. The nominal use of scripts in 3Dvirtual worlds is to impose some entity-state model on one or moregraphic objects. Graphic objects may thereby be created and manipulatedand be responsive to the event handlers in the scripts associated withthose graphic objects. In addition, the surface appearances of graphicobjects can be independently defined graphic objects called textures. Insome virtual world implementations, scripts can be used to control manyattributes of graphic objects, including the textures that are placedaccompanying their surfaces.

Referring to the drawings, and first to FIG. 1, the present invention isembodied in a network shown in block diagram form that includes serverblocks and client blocks operating in a wide area network. A 3D virtualenvironment system control program, such as Second Life™, runs in theserver computer 102 to create, contain, and manage a virtualmanifestation of a 3D environment. A viewer application that displaysthe virtual manifestation, allows the user to visually and audibly enterinto and dwell in, and perhaps manipulate that virtual environment, runsin each of the client computers 104, 106, 108, 110, and 112. In the caseof the instant invention, the viewer application is considered to beshowing that portion of the 3D virtual world wherein the presenter(presentation owner) is using the invention to offer a presentation toother individuals, who are also users of that 3D virtual world and whohave their respective viewers substantially collocated in virtual spaceand time with the presenter's view of the virtual world. Any one ofthese computers may be the one used by the presentation owner whocontrols the information content and sequencing of the presentation andwho also controls which graphic object is made the presentation graphicobject by enlargement to a more central and prominent home position onall of the computer displays, by means of the cyclorama handler in theprogram product of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a computer that may be used to embody thecomputers 102, 104, 106, 108, 110 and 112. For the purpose of describingthe present invention in the context of the preferred embodiment, atypical computer architecture is shown, which represents a configurationused in many personal computers at client sites and FIG. 2 is alsorepresentative of a server computer and a database computer such as 102.

A processor 215 is connected to a bus 217 which comprises a set of datalines, a set of address lines and a set of control lines. A plurality ofI/O devices including memory and storage devices are connected to thebus 217 through separate adapters. The I/O devices may be standardfeatures of the computer, or plug-in options. For example, these devicesmay include a display 219 connected through a graphics adapter 221, akeyboard 223 connected through an adapter 225 and a hard disk drive 227connected through adapter 229. The other devices are either included aspart of the computer or are available as plug-in options. The randomaccess memory (RAM) 231 and the read-only memory (ROM) 233 are includedas standard equipment in a computer, although additional random accessmemory to supplement RAM 231 may be added via a plug-in memory expansionoption.

As shown in FIG. 2, computer program logic 235 implementing the methodand presenter object tool of the invention, which is shown in theremaining drawings, is embodied as an article of manufacture byembedding the computer logic into compact disc 237, or other portablestorage media including the communication of stored computer programlogic via a communication medium such as the internet 100 which isconnected through adapter 259. Media 237 can be read by reader 239connected to bus 217 by adapter 241. Further, the computer program logic235 may be embodied as a special purpose apparatus by storing thecomputer logic's executable instructions in RAM 231, ROM 233, or acombination of both and or in DASD 227, accessible by the processor 215via adapter 229, for execution by processor 215.

In addition to use with the main processor 215, portions of the logic ofthe invention may be advantageously employed in special purpose devicessuch as the co-processor card 211 which is connected to bus 217.Co-processor card 211 may be a graphics processor to expedite combiningand manipulating graphic objects in the 3D viewer application. Again thecomputer logic 235 embodying the method of the invention may beimplemented as a special purpose apparatus by storing the computerprogram logic's executable instructions in RAM 253, ROM 255, or acombination of both and/or loaded into RAM 253 from DASD 227 asdescribed above. Exemplary co-processor 211 also contains acryptographic processing module 257 for efficiently executing algorithmssuch as the Data Encryption Standard (DES) algorithm and the RivestShamir & Adleman (RSA) algorithm as examples of available algorithmswhich can be used to verify the authenticity of users and downloadedapplications.

Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary describes the word cyclorama as “1:A large pictorial representation encircling the spectator and oftenhaving real objects in the foreground; 2: a curved cloth or wall used asa background of a stage set to suggest unlimited space.” The virtual 3Dpresentation space created by the instant invention, being similar to aclassic cyclorama, will be called a cyclorama hereinafter in describingthis embodiment of the invention. It will be recognized that the virtual3D space being occupied need not literally be cylindrical, but also maybe a another hollow polygonal or conical enclosure of a virtual space,or any portion thereof, without departing from the invention.

Depending upon the camera angle of a participating user, the informationdisplayed on the expanded image at the home position may be visibledirectly in front of, on a more edge-on view, or to the rear view of andtherefore out of view to the participating user. This notion is shown ingreater detail in FIG. 3 which gives more of a bird's eye viewdeclination, showing the back side of the graphic object at homeposition 315 and the views of many of the audience avatars, wherein theyare facing the expanded cyclorama graphic object in the homepresentation location 315. The presentation owner's avatar 329 is shownstanding at the side of the expanded image of the graphic object at homeposition 315. Without exercising independent camera control, thepresentation owner cannot see the image on the expanded cycloramagraphic object at home position directly on the computer display 311. Toaid the presenter, a mini-panel selector button 317 opens a mini-panel321 which shows a copy of the same image texture as is on the expandedcyclorama presentation graphic object at 315 obviating the implied needfor the presentation owner to change his camera view away from thecollected avatar audience. The mini-panel also allows the presentationowner to use the pointing cursor of the computer to point to particularelements of information on the second smaller image, which pointing issubsequently highlighted on the expanded cyclorama graphic object athome position and therefore relayed to all other users on their computerdisplays by virtue of the underlying virtual world implementation.

In this embodiment of the invention, cyclorama graphic objects areexpanded and contracted as they are rotated about the audience avatarsoccupying the space inside the cyclorama during a presentation. In gameapplications, there is little need to expand or contract a graphicobject because camera control on the part of the user is expected as theuser navigates an avatar in the game's 3D virtual world; such use ofcamera control is, in effect, part of playing such games. Because of thedynamic nature of the cyclorama system, expanding at least the imageportion of a graphic object to a conveniently large size for viewingwhile keeping the other graphic objects present but smaller, there is noimplicit need for an audience member to use avatar movement orindependent camera control to follow along with the presentation contentas offered by the presenter.

FIG. 4 depicts the default camera angle for the average audience user,showing that the full image of the expanded cyclorama graphic object athome position being presented by the owner is conspicuously distinctiveas the current image, relative to the other presentation images, stillpresent but whose graphic objects are not expanded. As shown in FIG. 5,an audience member user can use avatar movement or camera control tochange the camera view to allow close- or wide-angle view of anycyclorama graphic object or to a set of adjacent cyclorama graphicobjects. The changed avatar position of an audience member isdynamically shown on other users' computer displays by virtue of theunderlying 3D virtual world environment. Therefore, other users, andparticularly the presenter, are provided with feedback and are aware ofaudience attention to particular images in the presentation.

Architecturally, in this Second Life™ virtual 3D environment computerapplication embodiment of the virtual 3D environment, the cycloramapresenter object tool of the invention is assumed to be an avatar ownedas contrasted with collectively owned object. Therefore, the cycloramawill operate correctly in locations in Second Life where the owner hasbuild rights and script execution rights, because it must generate,link, and distribute its cyclorama graphic objects.

FIG. 3 at 301 illustrates the primary components of the cyclorama'svirtual 3D presentation environment of graphic objects. 311 is thecomputer display, and it represents a view into that portion of thevirtual world where the presentation experience is being given by thepresentation owner. 313 is the hollow cylindrical cyclorama wall-likering creating enclosed space 314. As shown in FIG. 7, the cycloramapresenter script program includes the re-entrant cyclorama handler 711,715, 727, and 745. The cyclorama presenter script program also includesthe cyclorama graphic object handler 721, 731, 749, 755 and the heads-updisplay handler 739 which is used by the presentation owner to start,advance, or review graphic object images. The cyclorama system, in itsfinal configuration for presentation, will also contain the imagetextures that are to be presented.

Design-wise, the cyclorama itself consists of only two graphic objectcomponents: the hollow cylindrical cyclorama object and the cycloramagraphic objects. The graphic object template for the cyclorama graphicobjects is an element of the inventory accessible to the cycloramahandler, along with the cyclorama's presenter script program, thecommand script program, and the information image textures that thecyclorama is to present. This form of packaging makes the sharing anddistribution of the cyclorama virtual environment straightforward andeasily managed.

The virtual 3D presentation environment 301 surrounds the virtual avataraudience in a hollow space, as depicted by the hollow cylindrical ring313. The presentation information content, assumed to be static images,is then placed onto the inward-facing surfaces of a collection ofgraphic objects. Although static images have been assumed, andsubstantially planar surfaces are shown, it is within the skill of theart to present video images, and on non-planar surfaces, of the graphicobjects without departing from the invention. Further, for purposes ofsimplifying the drawings, the graphic objects are shown as trapezoidalprisms resembling a TV screen. It will be understood that a simple twodimensional image graphic object as well as other complex graphicobjects such as automobiles, rail cars, and so forth including thetables 515 and 517 of FIG. 5 can be defined for selecting and placing at603 and 605 in FIG. 6 as the graphic objects carrying the presentationinformation with them on their surfaces as the cyclorama operates.Graphic object table 515 has been selected and placed into the midst ofavatars 333. In the event that such complex graphic objects areutilized, additional virtual 3D presentation environments such as a racetrack or a railroad in addition to the wall-like enclosure may bedefined. These additional virtual 3D presentation environments are thenavailable for selecting and placing at 601 as the defined virtual 3Dcyclorama environment into the Second Life™ virtual 3D environment asthe invention is started.

The cyclorama graphic objects are placed around the inner circumferenceof the hollow ring at equal angular displacements from each other, asexemplified by the images at 335 and 337. Once the presentation contentis built, then the current image 315, at the home position, expandsinwardly into the ring to a comfortable size for the user audience toeasily view and read the presentation image on their respective clientcomputer displays. When the presentation owner 329 needs to change to astart image or to the next or previous image sequentially, thepresentation owner can select the start 318 or either the next 320 orprevious 322 buttons, respectively, on the heads-up display 327. Thecyclorama's response is to: (1) reduce the size of the expandedcyclorama graphic object in the home position to its normal size,matching that of the other cyclorama graphic objects; (2) rotate thecyclorama ring 313 around the audience, carrying all the placedcyclorama graphic objects with it, so as to position the selectedgraphic object into the home position; and (3) expand the image carryinggraphic object now in the home position to its fuller viewing size.Apart from allowing the audience to largely remain attentive to the homeposition for the current presentation topic, this method visuallyestablishes a new expanded graphic object 315. This cycle repeats assequential images are requested by the presentation owner or by one ofthe audience users, such as during a question-and-answer session.

Unique in the cyclorama system is that, unlike with typical current 2Dpresentation devices, substantially the entirety of the presentation isavailable all at once and continuously after the cyclorama hasdynamically built the presentation, because the audience can be presentwithin the volume of 3D space inside the presentation system.

The effect of having all presentation content continuously available canbe seen in the sequence of FIG. 4 and FIG. 5. FIG. 4 shows one of thegroup of two audience users 333 congregated at the image at 335. In FIG.5, the two avatar members 333 of the user audience are fully showncongregated at the specific graphic objects 335 and 337, which haveimage 6 and image 7 textures, respectively. Thus, each user has theflexibility, by using avatar movement and/or independent camera control,to focus on any of the presentation images, while not interrupting themain presentation flow, yet allowing the presenter to be aware thataudience interest might not be concentrated on the material currentlybeing presented when a large number of the audience avatars are socongregated. With the spatial awareness that audience interest might lieelsewhere, the presenter can freely move to the content most of interestto the audience, moving quickly to later material or back to previousmaterial, as appropriate. The small window 327 has the next, previous,and start buttons to assist in accomplishing these moves.

This feature of the presentation environment of the invention is a majorimprovement over 2D presentation systems, even those 2D presentationsbeing delivered using a virtual 3D environment, because, in 2D methods,usually only one image is displayed at a given time; and changing awayfrom the intended topic or altering the sequence and flow of images is,as a rule, disruptive and disconcerting to both the presenter and theaudience. In the cyclorama presentation environment of the instantinvention, audience users can read or intensively study any image or setof images of the presentation at any time while the presentation ownerretains control of the presentation by means of motion to and expansionof presentation information at the home position.

FIG. 5 shows how an audience subgroup can collaborate withoutintroducing cacophony into the common chat or voice communicationschannels. FIG. 5 is a perspective camera view of the image seen by thetwo users 333 who are not watching the expanded image zero onpresentation graphic object 315 at the home position being currentlypresented but are reviewing image 6 and/or image 7 on graphic objects335 and 337. The computer display 511 shows the cyclorama ring 513 andthe graphic objects 335 and 337. FIG. 5 also shows how audience userscan at will, walk, navigate, or point to any graphic object of thepresentation at any time. A subgroup of audience users as represented bytheir avatars can move to study, in close proximity, a particular imageor set of images and, using chat or other collaboration features of thevirtual 3D environment, can engage in real-time dialogue about that setwithout disrupting the remaining audience. Hence, a real-timecollaboration about various images or subsets of images in thepresentation can occur without having to fragment the audience or sendworking groups elsewhere. These kinds of interactions are not generallypossible in real-world presentation venues; but they are immediatelyavailable, for no incremental cost, in a 3D virtual world.

FIG. 5 also shows that the virtual 3D cyclorama environment presentationwall 513 can have any texture, including a translucent texture. Further,the virtual 3D cyclorama environment can be placed into an alreadyexisting virtual 3D setting, such as a classroom, auditorium, or coffeeshop. Illustrative examples in FIG. 5 are coffee table 515, locatedwithin the enclosed space of the cyclorama, and coffee table 517 outsidethe translucent cyclorama ring.

Operation of the Invention

The method of the invention as implemented in Second Life™ requiresthree steps. (1) Resolve the virtual 3D presentation environment whichin this embodiment is a cyclorama ring by deploying it into the 3Dvirtual world. (2) Populate the cyclorama ring's accessible inventorywith the image data, generally called textures, that are to constitutethe presentation. (3) Touch the cyclorama ring to generate and renderthe presentation.

In this Second Life embodiment, the ordering of the images is by theirlexicographic alphabetical ordering, so naming of the textures isimportant. Most programs that generate sequences of image files likeJPEG and PNG files will automatically name a collection of separateimages with some numerical sequencer in the names of the separate files.Hence, managing the names of the image files is not usually a problem ifthe images are generated automatically from a multiple page presentationor image sequence. The owner will generally need only to bulk upload theimages from the owner's client computer platform into inventory inSecond Life to gather all the needed images for populating thecyclorama.

FIG. 6 summarizes the method and operation of the instant invention.Block 603 denotes populating the cyclorama handler's accessibleinventory with the textures constituting the presentation content. Topopulate the cyclorama with image data for the presentation, the ownerplaces image textures from an inventory of text processing and portabledocument format files into an inventory of textures accessible to thecyclorama handler. The presentation owner would copy textures to theinventory of the cyclorama ring, from which the textures are thenavailable to the scripts also in the inventory of the cyclorama ring.Copying is accomplished by right-clicking the ring, and then selectingEdit on the menu. On the untitled Edit window that appears, select theContent tab. Select in inventory all textures that need to be placed inthe ring's contents. Then drag any selected texture by name from theinventory list to the container area of the Contents tab.

Block 601 denotes deployment of the cyclorama through the deploymentmechanism of the underlying 3D virtual world. For example, the cycloramaowner deploys the cyclorama in Second Life™ by dragging it onto thevirtual world's ground, or other available open surface, from theowner's inventory. The virtual world's ground may include an alreadypresent environment such as a coffee shop or an auditorium.

Block 605 denotes initiation of the cyclorama's self-building process bymeans of touching the cyclorama ring. The cyclorama handler responds bycyclically, for each texture copied at 603: (1) generating a newcyclorama graphic object; (2) optionally resizing the cyclorama graphicobject so that all generated presentation graphic objects will fitwithin the inner circumference of the cyclorama ring; (3) placing thecyclorama presentation graphic object at the correct placement locationto fill in the next spot around the cyclorama ring; (4) assigning thetexture with the inner surface of the cyclorama graphic object. Thiscycle is performed for each texture constituting the presentation. Whenthe placement of all the cyclorama graphic objects is complete, thecyclorama graphic object at the home position is expanded inwardly intothe cyclorama's enclosed space. This cyclorama graphic object is thestart image of the presentation.

At block 607, the presentation owner can begin making the presentationas shown in FIG. 3. If the presentation owner wishes to present using anavatar in a traditional audience-facing position next to the expandedgraphic object, the owner can open the mini-panel 321 as shown at 607and in FIG. 3. Thereafter, the owner is free to provide an oralpresentation, usually supporting or supplementing the current image onthe expanded presentation graphic object at the home position. When theowner needs to move to another information image, the owner will touchone of the control buttons on the heads-up display of FIG. 3, or touchthe desired cyclorama graphic object directly, or issue a command on achat channel as later herein described. All of these actions cause thecyclorama presentation graphic object at the home position to contract,after which the entire cyclorama, carrying all cyclorama graphicobjects, rotates so that the selected cyclorama graphic object is movedto the home position, after which the selected cyclorama graphic objectis expanded as shown at 315 in FIG. 3.

At the completion of the oral presentation, a question-and-answersession may be desired by the presenter. In an alternative embodiment ofthe instant invention, the owner can set the cyclorama into a mode thatallows transmission of audience members' selection of a cycloramagraphic object to place in the home position, as previously described.This feedback mode is enabled via a heads-up display button or command,as later described and is displayed to the presentation owner on display301 of the presentation owner.

Further, the presentation owner may wish to get a show of hands for eachof a number of options that have been presented in particular images. Inan alternative embodiment of the instant invention, the feedbackfunction 609 is opened by selecting the feedback mode selection button319 on the presentation owner's heads-up display or by an equivalentchat command to collect audience member inputs. Audience users respond,in one embodiment of the invention, by touching cyclorama graphicobjects or other complex graphic objects resolved during the course of apresentation. The feedback function at block 611 tabulates the multipleaudience users' inputs and delivers them to the presentation owner inone of several possible ways. For example, the responses cast for eachpresented information image can be displayed as a number adjacent to thecyclorama graphic objects for all to see, or they can be delivered as alist to the presentation owner. At block 613 feedback is deactivated.

FIG. 7 shows the interactions that implement the method of the inventionin its Second Life™ embodiment across the network of computers involved.The presentation owner 329 is shown at the left of FIG. 7, indicatingthe owner's input at a client computer; and the cyclorama handler 711 isshown at the right in the server computer. The resolve input 705 and theready response 707 move in the network to place the cyclorama into the3D virtual world environment of Second Life™. Once resolved, the ownerinitiates resolving of cyclorama presentation graphic objects 713 bytouching the cyclorama ring. The re-entrant cyclorama handler 715resolves a cyclorama presentation graphic object to be conjoined to theincreasingly complex cyclorama ring object. At 719, the angle, radius,position, and texture are sent to the cyclorama graphic handler object721. At 723 the graphic cyclorama presentation graphic object is in viewon the client computer display screens. The interactions in that portionof FIG. 7 containing 715, 719, and 721 occur over and over, once foreach texture to be rendered as a part of the presentation.

The remaining portions of FIG. 7 show how the system of the inventionoperates after the cyclorama has been resolved and populated withcyclorama graphic objects with their respective information images. Whenthe presentation owner touches one of the cyclorama graphic objects at725, a message is passed from the touched object to the re-entrantcyclorama handler 727. The message is acted upon by the cycloramahandler by sending contract message 729 to the cyclorama graphic objecthandler 731 in the cyclorama presentation graphic object at the homeposition. Then the cyclorama, carrying all cyclorama graphic objects,rotates to place the touched cyclorama graphic object at home positionto become the presentation graphic object. Then the cyclorama handlersends expand message 733 to the cyclorama graphic object handler 731 toexpand the touched object for audience viewing at 735. The touchedexpanded cyclorama presentation graphic object is displayed at the homeposition on all client computer display screens.

Alternately the presentation owner may press one of the next, previous,and start buttons displayed on the owner's client computer displayscreen at 737, causing the heads-up display handler 739 to generate acommand message 741 on a chat message channel known between 739 andre-entrant cyclorama handler 727. Again the message is acted upon by thecyclorama handler 727, by sending contract message 729 to the cycloramagraphic object handler 731 in the cyclorama presentation graphic objectat the home position. Then the cyclorama, carrying all cyclorama graphicobjects, rotates to place the touched cyclorama graphic object at homeposition. Then the cyclorama handler sends expand message 733 to thecyclorama graphic object handler 731 to expand the touched object foraudience viewing at 735. The touched expanded cyclorama presentationgraphic object is displayed at the home position on all client computerdisplay screens.

The remaining interactions show how chat commands, described in detailbelow, can be used to control the cyclorama during a presentation by theowner to an audience. At 743, a local chat command is sent to cycloramahandler 745 on the known cyclorama chat channel. The re-entrantcyclorama handler 745 controls the cyclorama presentation graphic objecthandler 749 by sending any required messages 747 to perform thecommanded function, which function has completed at 751. Alternately thepresentation owner can send a local chat command 753 on the known chatchannel to the cyclorama presentation graphic object handlers 755. Thecyclorama presentation graphic object handlers perform the commandedfunction, which has completed at 757.

FIG. 8 comprises FIGS. 8A and 8B as shown on drawing sheet 8. FIGS. 8Aand 8B describe blocks 601, 603, and 605 of FIG. 6 in more detail. Thepresentation owner's deployment of the presenter object tool in thevirtual 3D environment is shown at 801 in the flow diagram in FIG. 8A.At 803 the dependent scripts are reset to their default state. At 805the number of graphic objects needed to carry the images is calculated.At 807 the cyclorama handler 711 is placed in listen mode while itcontinues to perform the checks described below. As the presenter objecttool resolves, it performs checks at 809 for whether it will be allowedto generate cyclorama graphic objects and at 813 whether there is asufficient number of graphic objects available, in its deployedlocation, for the cyclorama to resolve a sufficient number of graphicobjects for showing the entirety of the presentation contents. Theheads-up-display 327 is offered at block 817 to the presentation owner.At 819 the cyclorama handler enters listen mode to accept presentationowner input.

Control then passes to the state entry handler 827 of the invention asshown in FIG. 8A. At 821 the initial rotation of the presenter objecttool is captured. At 823 the rotation increment is calculated to allowplacement of all cyclorama graphic objects at the proper positionsaround the inner perimeter of the presenter object tool. Permissions tochange linking are checked at 825.

In FIG. 8B, the object change handler 837 then calculates and stores at829 the path from a central resolution location in enclosed space 314 toa placement location of the graphic object to the inner perimeter of313. 831 resolves the graphic object, block 833 links the graphic objectto the presenter object tool, and the code in block 835 initiates thegraphic object size inquiry. Message handler 839 then responds toreceipt of the size inquiry response by checking at 841 that the linkmessage is from a cyclorama graphic object and at 845 that the responseformat is valid. If either result is NO, control is transferred to errorhandling states 843 and 847 respectively. If the answers are YES, thecorrect graphic object size is calculated and stored at 849 and thecorrect linear displacement is re-calculated and stored at 851, afterwhich the graphic object is moved to its presentation placementlocation. Thereafter this method is repeated by returning to the objectchange handler 837 for the next graphic object, and the cycle repeatsuntil all graphic objects are resolved and placed. After the graphicobjects have been resolved and placed in the cyclorama, the cycloramahandler is again placed in listen mode at 855 to receive the inputs fromthe presentation owner to control the sequencing of the presentation.

After the cyclorama has been resolved and populated, it can be takenback into inventory and then later resolved again in another location inSecond Life™.

In this embodiment of the invention in Second Life™, permissions areimportant when placing textures in the presenter object tool's contents.It is advantageous to specify copy, modify, and transfer permissions andare Share with Group enabled for all textures placed in the contents ofthe cyclorama. To change the permissions on textures, select all thetextures whose properties need to be changed, via Shift+click orCtrl+click multiple selection methods. Then right-click over anyselected texture, and select Properties. For each texture, select ShareWith Group and all three next-owner permissions of Copy, Modify, andResell/Give away. Finally close the inner properties window so as tomove on to the next texture.

Having resolved the cylindrical 3D virtual presentation environment,populated the environment by placing the information to be presentedonto virtual 3D graphic object surfaces of the cylindrical 3D virtualpresentation environment, and returned control to a virtual 3Dapplication program, which in this embodiment is Second Life™ running inclient computers for interaction with users and the presentation ownerto present the information to be presented, the presentation system ofthe invention is ready for operation in presenting information subjectmatter to a widely-dispersed user audience in the computer implementedvirtual 3D environment.

The cyclorama can be controlled directly via commands in the local chat,as provided by the underlying virtual world's functions andcapabilities. The commands of NEXT, PREVIOUS, and START have alreadybeen described, and they operate in the same manner as described for thesame-named selections on the heads-up display. The following commandsare examples of many that are possible in the instant invention.

A command of SLIDE with a parameter of SLIDE-NUMBER, moves the cycloramato immediately make the designated SLIDE-NUMBER the current image 315.SLIDE-NUMBER is a zero-based cardinal value, meaning that the firstslide is numbered zero.

A command CHANNEL with a parameter of the CHANNEL-NUMBER, changes thecyclorama's listening channel number to CHANNEL-NUMBER, and then changesall the cyclorama graphic objects' channel numbers to(CHANNEL-NUMBER+1).

A command RESET deletes all cyclorama graphic objects from thecyclorama.

In one embodiment, the cyclorama graphic objects also listen forcommands from local chat on the next (more positive) sequential channelfrom that of the cyclorama ring object, giving the cyclorama graphicobjects the ability to respond to commands independently from thecyclorama ring. The following commands are examples of many that arepossible in the instant invention.

A command of EXPAND makes the cyclorama graphic object grow to its homeposition size, as shown by 315 in FIG. 4, so that nearby audience users,as represented by their avatars, can easily view the information imageon the cyclorama graphic object.

A command of CONTRACT makes the cyclorama graphic object shrink to itsdefault size and position around the inner perimeter of the cyclorama,as shown by 335 and 337 in FIG. 3.

A command of RADIUS with a parameter of FLOAT-VALUE stores theFLOAT-VALUE as the displacement for the cyclorama graphic object.

A command of ANGLE with a parameter of FLOAT-VALUE stores theFLOAT-VALUE as the local rotational angle of the cyclorama graphicobject.

A command of POSITION places the cyclorama graphic object, in the localcoordinate system of the cyclorama ring, according to the previouslystored values from RADIUS and ANGLE commands.

A command of TEXTURE with a parameter supplying access to the texture tobe placed causes the inner display surface of the cyclorama graphicobject to present the texture.

A command of CHANNEL with the parameter of CHANNEL-NUMBER changes thecyclorama graphic object's listening channel number to CHANNEL-NUMBER.

Having described the system, apparatus, and method of the invention, itwill be understood by those skilled in the

art of computer systems that many additional modifications andadaptations to the present invention can be made in both embodiment andapplication without departing from the spirit of this invention. Forexample, although the invention has been described with respect toembodiment in Second Life™ for certain sales and lecture applications,it will be understood that the invention is applicable in other virtual3D environment application programs and for other uses such as businessmeetings, political assemblies, and anywhere that information is to bepresented to a remote audience, potentially widely dispersed, via acomputer network.

Accordingly, this description should be considered as illustrative ofthe present invention, which provides for improved presentation incomputer network virtual 3D environments, allowing body languagefeedback as well as audience participation by providing feedback onpresented concepts embodied in the presented information including thatwhich is in the images presented as graphic objects, and not inlimitation thereof.

1. A system for presenting information to audience users in a computernetwork implemented virtual 3D environment comprising: a servercomputer; a virtual 3D environment computer application running in theserver computer; a presenter object tool running within the virtual 3Denvironment computer application for use by a presentation owner increating and presenting information to the audience users, the presenterobject tool assisting a presentation owner in creating a virtual 3Dpresentation environment of graphic objects, the presenter object toolassisting a presentation owner in placing the information to bepresented with the graphic objects; logic in the presenter tool forcontrolling motion of the graphic objects around an audience of users tosequence the presentation of the presentation information displayed onclient computers of the audience of users.
 2. The system of claim 1wherein the logic in the presenter tool expands and contracts thegraphic objects as they are rotated about an audience of usersrepresented by avatars occupying the space inside a virtual 3D cycloramaenvironment during a presentation.
 3. The system of claim 1 wherein: thegraphic objects have at least one substantially planar surface forreceiving the information to be presented and, when a graphic object isplaced in a placement location, the planar surface is facing inward inthe virtual 3D presentation environment.
 4. The system of claim 3wherein: the presenter object tool expands the planar surface of agraphic object at a presentation location into a larger viewing size forviewing by audience users whose camera angle contains the graphic objectat the presentation location.
 5. The system of claim 1 wherein: thepresenter object tool provides a heads up display of next, previous, andstart buttons for display on the presentation owner's computer displayand use by the presentation owner to control the motion of the graphicobjects around the audience of users.
 6. The system of claim 5 whereinthe heads up display further comprises: a mini-view button for selectionby a presentation owner to cause a copy of the information currentlybeing presented with the graphic object at the presentation location toappear on a mini-view panel associated with the heads up display.
 7. Thesystem of claim 5 wherein: selection of the next button causes: anexpanded graphic object at a presentation location to contract, thegraphic objects to increment one position, and a next adjacent graphicobject to expand at the presentation location; selection of the previousbutton causes: an expanded graphic object at the presentation locationto contract, the graphic objects to decrement one position, and aprevious adjacent graphic object to expand at the presentation location;selection of the start button causes: an expanded graphic object at thepresentation location to contract, the graphic objects to move as manypositions as necessary to place a start graphic object at thepresentation location and to expand at the presentation location.
 8. Thesystem of claim 1 wherein the presenter object tool is responsive to aselection of a graphic object by the presentation owner to cause anexpanded graphic object at the presentation location to contract, andthe graphic objects to move as many positions as necessary to place theselected graphic object at the presentation location and to expand atthe presentation location.
 9. The system of claim 1 wherein the virtual3D environment computer application comprises: an avatar representingthe presentation owner and an avatar representing each audience user forproviding feedback to the presentation owner and to audience usersregarding attention of the presentation owner and audience users tospecific graphic objects.
 10. A method for presenting information toaudience users in a computer implemented virtual 3D environmentcomprising: selecting and placing a defined virtual 3D cycloramaenvironment into the virtual 3D environment; selecting and placinginformation to be presented onto a surface of at least three definedgraphic objects; selecting and placing the defined graphic objects intothe defined virtual 3D cyclorama environment; selecting one of thegraphic objects as a presentation graphic object being presented at ahome position in the virtual cyclorama environment by: selecting one of:a next sequential graphic object of the graphic objects; a previoussequential graphic object of the graphic objects; a start graphic objectof the sequence of graphic objects; and moving the graphic objects ofthe defined virtual cyclorama environment around the audience of usersto move the selected graphic object into the home position; enlarging atleast the surface of the selected one of the graphic objects at the homeposition for viewing by audience users; allowing an audience user tonavigate away from the presentation graphic object at the home positionto another graphic object.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein theselecting one of the graphic objects as a presentation graphic objectbeing presented at a home position in the virtual cyclorama environmentfurther comprises: rotating the entire cyclorama, carrying all cycloramagraphic objects, so that the selected cyclorama graphic object is movedto the home position.
 12. The method of 10 where avatars representparticipants to a presentation further comprising: placing complexgraphic objects accompanying the presentation information into a midstof the avatars representing the audience users.
 13. The method of claim10 wherein the defined virtual 3D cyclorama environment comprises acyclorama presentation wall that is translucent and the selecting andplacing a defined virtual 3D cyclorama environment into the virtual 3Denvironment further comprises: placing the defined virtual 3D cycloramaenvironment into an existing defined virtual 3D environment so that thecyclorama environment includes graphic objects within and outside of thecyclorama presentation wall.
 14. The method of claim 10 furthercomprising: activating audience feedback logic to allow transmission ofan audience user's selection of a graphic object to the presentationowner.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein activating audience feedbacklogic further comprises: displaying an audience user's selection to thepresentation owner.
 16. The method of claim 15 wherein displaying anaudience user's selection further comprises: displaying selections ofmultiple audience users to the presentation owner.
 17. The method ofclaim 14 wherein activating audience feedback logic further comprises:deactivating audience feedback.
 18. A computer program product forassisting a presentation owner in creating and presenting information toaudience users in a computer network implemented virtual 3D environment,the computer program product comprising: a computer readable storagemedium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, thecomputer readable program code comprising: computer readable programcode providing a virtual 3D cyclorama presentation environment ofvirtual graphic objects, and; computer readable program code forreceiving information to be presented and placing the information to bepresented onto a surface of at least three of the virtual graphicobjects; computer readable program code for responding to selection ofone of the virtual graphic objects to move the selected one of thevirtual graphic objects to a home position, and; expanding the selectedone of the graphic objects for viewing by an audience user; computerreadable program code for responding to selection of one of: a nextsequential graphic object of the graphic objects; a previous sequentialgraphic object of the graphic objects; a start graphic object of thesequence of graphic objects, and; computer readable program code forrotating the graphic objects around the audience of users at a perimeterof the virtual 3D cyclorama presentation environment to place theselected graphic object into the home position.